Expand Port Everglades to generate more jobs

October 5, 2011|By Phillip C. Allen

When school groups come to tour Port Everglades, we always start by asking the children: "Who here ate a banana for breakfast?" And, "Who is wearing sneakers?" They are always startled to find out that their breakfast bananas and sneakers arrive by ship to Port Everglades before landing on the shelves at Publix or Wal-Mart. For adult tours, we replace sneakers with flat-screen televisions and laptop computers, and get the same startled responses.

Goods such as bananas, sneakers and electronics only tell one side of the economic impact story about Port Everglades — the story that everyone can relate to as consumers. The other side of the story is about the jobs that are created and supported by Port Everglades, and the resulting personal income, tax dollars and economic activity that these jobs generate. In fact, exported goods from Port Everglades last year totaled $11.1 billion, which the U.S. Department of Commerce equates to supporting 55,000 U.S. jobs.

This past March, the Broward County Board of County Commissioners adopted a 20-year Master/Vision Plan for Port Everglades that is actually an update of the original plan approved in 2007. The new plan is a roadmap for capital improvements at the port. It is updated regularly to take into account how trends and changes in the marketplace, and in our lifestyles, create demands on existing facilities that in turn necessitate physical changes at the port, such as longer docks and deeper channels. These infrastructure improvements are critical to keeping Port Everglades vibrant and competitive.

Broward County and the surrounding region are dependent upon Port Everglades for almost $14 billion in economic activity that supports jobs, tax dollars, tourism, food, gasoline, and other resources in our community. As an enterprise fund, Port Everglades is self-supporting and does not use local tax dollars to operate. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that our Broward County Commissioners are planning for the port's future with capital improvements that will make our port more efficient, sustainable and competitive.

What may be surprising however, are the detrimental consequences that could impact our region if these Master/Vision Plan projects do not move forward.

Consider the impact and what is at stake with the port's current three key capital projects:

The Southport Turning Notch berth expansion, slated for completion in 2017, will add five new ship berths at Port Everglades and create 16.5 acres of new mangrove habitat. This project will create 2,227 temporary construction jobs in the near term and 5,529 new regional, permanent jobs and $252.2 million annually in state and local taxes by the year 2027.

Widening and deepening the port's ship channels, which is expected to be complete by 2017, will create 4,659 construction jobs in the near term and 1,491 new ongoing regional jobs and $934.9 million annually in state and local taxes by the year 2027.

The Intermodal Container Transfer Facility, or ICTF, bringing freight rail into the port, will create 767 construction jobs. Ground was broken for the first stage of this project, the Eller Drive Overpass, in July 2011 and the project is expected to be completed by the end of 2013. Recently, Broward County commissioners approved a memorandum of understanding that will allow the Florida East Coast Railroad to finance and construct the ICTF on 42.5 acres of existing port property. Completion of this facility will reduce truck traffic over local roads and improve air quality.

Without berths and channels capable of handling larger ships with heavier cargo loads, and convenient rail to move the cargo to its destinations, ocean shipping companies will simply go elsewhere, along with the jobs they support and dollars they inject into our economy.

This is especially important to consider as the Panama Canal, the direct artery for cargo ships to carry goods from Asia and the Pacific to the U.S. East Coast, is being widened to accommodate larger ships and a larger number of ships by the year 2014. This means that goods coming from China, Japan and Korea can be shipped via an all-water route directly to Florida ports and other seaports on the eastern seaboard instead of transported across the country by rail to the East Coast from California and other Pacific state ports before being trucked into Florida. This is a win-win for consumers and the environment.

Additionally, South Florida trade with South America, Central America and the Caribbean continues to increase. Exports from the United States to these regions are growing as these Latin American economies become stronger and their populations increase spending. Port Everglades is the top seaport in Florida for international export trade, most of which is conducted with Latin America.

We cannot afford to lose these jobs to other states that are already investing in additional berths, deeper channels, and transportation connections.